1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to safes and mechanisms for operating them. More particularly it relates to safes that are intended successively to be used at short intervals by different persons, such as the safes which are located in hotel rooms for the convenience of the guests.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Safes of this kind that are actuated by means of magnetic cards, such as credit cards, are known in the art. However the known safes have a number of drawbacks. For instance, they are intended to be powered from a power line, batteries being provided merely for emergency and having, when so used, only a limited life, in the order of 100 days or slightly more. This constitutes a disadvantage in hotel rooms in which several electrical appliances are already located and limits the possibility of placing the safe where one wishes. Further, it is customary to provide the user with a special card which is employed to operate the safe, and the user cannot employ any magnetic card he possesses. Still further, known safes are not adequately protected against malfunctions, which may cause great inconvenience to the user. One of such malfunctions may derive from a defect in the magnetic code of the card employed or its reading by the magnetic card reader. Still further, the electrically operating locking mechanisms of the known safes do not afford adequate protection against braking in.